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𝐼𝑛𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑎𝑑, 𝑠ℎ𝑒 𝑎𝑟𝑔𝑢𝑒𝑠 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑝𝑢𝑏𝑙𝑖𝑐 𝑠𝑐ℎ𝑜𝑜𝑙𝑠 𝑎𝑟𝑒 𝑤𝑜𝑟𝑡ℎ 𝑟𝑒𝑣𝑖𝑠𝑖𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑏𝑒𝑐𝑎𝑢𝑠𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑦’𝑟𝑒 𝑎 𝑡𝑒𝑠𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑓𝑎𝑖𝑡ℎ—𝑘𝑖𝑑𝑠 𝑔𝑒𝑡 𝑡𝑜 𝑒𝑥𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑖𝑒𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑏𝑒𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑖𝑛 𝑎𝑛 𝑒𝑛𝑣𝑖𝑟𝑜𝑛𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑤ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒 𝑛𝑜𝑡 𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑦𝑜𝑛𝑒 𝑠ℎ𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑠 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑖𝑟 𝑏𝑒𝑙𝑖𝑒𝑓𝑠!

True enough. The obvious problem is that the kids are liable to see that those around them are NOT trying to indoctrinate them or brainwash them, but to TEACH them, with valuable lessons about English and math and history, never mind socialize them with other kids, possibly of different backgrounds, origins and faiths (and maybe NO faith).

And I can see why some of the faithful lost their shit at McDade ... because she had the unmitigated NERVE to allow her children OUT OF THE CHRISTIAN BUBBLE! EEEEK! Those POOR KIDS! They might be exposed to IDEAS that aren't OURS! Worse, they may figure out that WE'RE LYING TO THEM! We can't have that!

And here I sit, chuckling to myself, because it WILL happen, sooner or later, and I can't help but notice that OUR numbers are GROWING while theirs are dwindling.

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+++

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Phew, great piece today. I've spent most of my life in rural America, where most home schooling goes on, and these poor kids develop little to no social skills early in life (as mentioned) and transition can be hard.

It was sort of like my own experience of going to a private girls school for middle and high school and then choosing a public university for college. Imagine a 17 year old who had barely dated going to a college where half the population was male? ;)

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The term: "culture shock" comes to mind. Parents who keep their kids in their own, sequestered environment like this do them a horrible disservice, for precisely the reason you cite. I suppose they want to be certain that the indoctrination has taken and that the kids buy into it, and many do.

But some don't ... or they see the world outside and wonder at the differences and check them against what they've been told. And then the questions start, along with the REAL growth.

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You went full sex, drugs and Rock & Roll ? 😁

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Pretty much, yeah. ;D

I dropped out after my sophomore year to work for a small animal vet and a few years later, quit to become a cowgirl and worked on a cattle farm.

Dad was not a happy camper.

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Love it!

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My college experience pretty much aligns with the Kiss rock anthem that was current at the time: "I wanna rock and roll all night, and party every day"

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My college years were tame compared to my junior and high school years 🤣

It's amazing what can happens in a boardschool away from parents eyes.

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Sep 12
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But the fundamentalists think their children are chattel they own.

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"My faith cannot withstand basic scrutiny. My ideas will crumble the moment they meet reality."

That's your witness, guys.

Well, that and "My god is too small and powerless to survive in the world unless I use the State's monopoly on violence to force everyone to adhere to my god's rules as interpreted by me."

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I often thought in my late teens and twenties, "If your faith can't withstand questioning, how strong can it be?"

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𝑊ℎ𝑦 𝑖𝑠 𝑖𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑠 𝑠𝑢𝑝𝑝𝑜𝑠𝑒𝑑𝑙𝑦 𝑎𝑙𝑚𝑖𝑔ℎ𝑡𝑦 𝑔𝑜𝑑 𝑐𝑎𝑛 𝑑𝑜 𝑎𝑛𝑦𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑘𝑛𝑜𝑤 𝑎𝑛𝑦𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑛𝑔, 𝑏𝑢𝑡 𝑐𝑎𝑛𝑛𝑜𝑡 𝑤𝑖𝑡ℎ𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑠𝑘𝑒𝑝𝑡𝑖𝑐𝑖𝑠𝑚? 𝐴 𝑔𝑜𝑑 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑠ℎ𝑟𝑖𝑛𝑘𝑠 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑎 𝑠𝑖𝑚𝑝𝑙𝑒 𝑞𝑢𝑒𝑠𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑖𝑠 𝑝𝑎𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑡𝑖𝑐 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑛𝑜𝑡 𝑤𝑜𝑟𝑡ℎ𝑦 𝑜𝑓 𝑟𝑒𝑐𝑜𝑔𝑛𝑖𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛, 𝑙𝑒𝑡 𝑎𝑙𝑜𝑛𝑒 𝑤𝑜𝑟𝑠ℎ𝑖𝑝.

-- me

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Their omniscient god doesn’t know anything without their constant unending prayers.

Their omnipotent god can’t do anything without their stealing elections and co-opting law & government.

Their omnipresent god can’t be anywhere without them forcing it onto people and places.

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Ummmm........ it almost sounds like nothing they do is related to God at all, but only control and domination......ummmm

🤔

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Well you see, your faith can't withstand questioning because Satan is super powerful in influencing human minds. I mean God can kick his butt without lifting a finger, but God doesn't. Because it's not part of His plan. But don't worry, the plan is perfect. Even if the plan has you ending up in hell for eternity because a superpowerful evil being mindwarped you into a belief mistake for a few paltry years on Earth, due to incomplete information.

But wait, there's more. You didn't actually make any belief mistake due to Satan, because secretly in your heart you know God exists. So it's your fault, not anyone else's. The reason your faith can't withstand questioning is because you are weak. Why should God hold you personally responsible for your weakness? Well because you umpteen-x grandmother didn't obey God, so he cursed you. Collective punishment of the innocent being okay for God, you see, and don't question that because He's perfect. This means your weakness cursed upon you by your infinite-x grandmother's actions is totally on you and thus your choice not to believe in the face of questioning will send you to hell. And as a reminder, that's hell for eternity. For your temporary mistake. Because God is perfectly an infinitely merciful, and forgives everything. Well except for the things he doesn't forgive, which includes voting for the Democratic candidate in the US election, evidently.

I'm sure you can see the theological sense in all that.

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“Because I said so”. A reason I didn’t accept from my actual parents, much less a virtual parent who never seems to be there and says he’ll punish me for eternity for questioning his rules.

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I am sure that explanations work far better than indoctrinations. As long as you don't lie.

Hmmm. Now I am not sure what I am trying to tell you.

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Their all-powerful god loses all its power in the presence of a non-zero number of unbelievers.

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And from their God who created both Satan and his son Jesus Christ - but yet he murdered Jesus and let Satan live.

And a God who requested Abraham to murder one of his sons and at the last minute "psych, just kidding".

Yeah that god, he's a really great fucking guy...... he deserves so much adoration......

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The stage crew tied a rope to his foot, so he genuinely didn’t know when they would pull it.

That’s why his surprise is genuine, and why he looks more apprehensive than outraged.

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What everyone involved in the CT article, from the author to the rabid respondents, forgets is that the public schools are teeming with Christians. Like the vast majority of teachers, administrators and students are actually Christian. They might not be the evangelical brand, but they do have much the same beliefs. So what these people are afraid of, really, is that their children might actually learn something and think on their own. Not that they will be taught Jesus isn’t real. Sure, they do think that different sects are not real Christians, but still the foundation of their beliefs are still there.

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To fundies, other Christians are as bad a danger or maybe a *worse* one than non-Christians. Because moderates of any stripe might challenge their kid's idiosyncratic beliefs, but the *Christian* challengers are living breathing examples that one can abandon those beliefs and still follow Jesus.

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To fundies, other Christians are not Real True Christians, except when they need to pad their numbers on polls and to win arguments against non-Christians.

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KKKatliks vs. Babbletists, for example.

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"Oh yes, what could possibly go wrong handing your children over..."

Stop right there, Name Of a Torture/Execution Device. Over and over and over, we've seen what happens to children who are handed over to people in clerical garb. The headlines and police blotter entries in this country (as well as other countries worldwide) are non-stop.

Try making an effort to end that before you go pointing fingers at others with your lies.

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They forget that sending the kids to youth group while they are in the main service counts as "handing your children over." "Youth pastor" seems to be synonymous with "sex offender."

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Protestants seem to go for girls and priests go for boys.

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No it isn't. That you hear about youth pastors being sex offenders does not imply that most of them are. Nor the opposite.

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Wrong name. It’s actually “Cult That Worships A Torture/Execution Device.”

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Finally someone agreeing that worshipping a Roman torture device is the best trick a Roman Emperor ever played on his people. Kiss the cross I can hang you on and worship my power. Original Christians used the sign of the Fish and Jesus was born a Pisces, not near Winter Solstice.

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"But the Christian Right has spent decades lying about the extent of those problems to an audience of believers predisposed to hating anything connected to the government."

Anything but money. The Christian Right loves free money from the government to fund whatever it wants, despite the fact that Christian churches pay no taxes. The Christian Right also has no problem with lying, even though their own god in their own book detests lying lips.

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If you need a guide to doing the right thing, look at what the Christian Right wants and do the opposite.

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🎯That's how I vet political candidates, by looking up who the local right-to-suffer-in life-hate church and cross them off.

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Can we, just for a moment, stop and appreciate the level of divorce from reality it must take to accuse teachers of abusing kids, when the ones more often convicted of that sort of crime are church leaders?

Again we see the Christian attitude that children belong to their parents paired with a desperate desire to prevent Little Johnny or Little Suzie from leaving the bubble. Christians have not, to my knowledge, ever proven they are better parent or that Christian families produce better members of society. 𝑻𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝒊𝒔 𝒏𝒐 𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒔𝒐𝒏 𝒂𝒕 𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒕𝒐 𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒐𝒘 𝑪𝒉𝒓𝒊𝒔𝒕𝒊𝒂𝒏 𝒑𝒂𝒓𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒂𝒎𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒕 𝒐𝒇 𝒍𝒆𝒆𝒘𝒂𝒚 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒚 𝒕𝒐𝒐 𝒐𝒇𝒕𝒆𝒏 𝒆𝒏𝒋𝒐𝒚 𝒘𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝒊𝒕 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒆𝒔 𝒕𝒐 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒆𝒅𝒖𝒄𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒐𝒇 𝒄𝒉𝒊𝒍𝒅𝒓𝒆𝒏. Too many Christian skools [sic] fail to actually provide their students with a useful education that would make them contributing members of society due to this desire to keep people in their Christian bubble.

I've said many, many, many times on this site that I honestly wish religion would get completely out of education, and for some very good reasons. Articles like this one strengthen this opinion. It's become painfully clear that Christianity acts as a shackle when it comes to learning, rather than as a ladder to a brighter future. Homeschooling is by no means a solution to anything, it's just a roll of insulation on the bubble.

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What gets me is they are accusing them of weirder shit than this – like sending them off to a hospital for a sex change. What sort of a nong would you have to be to believe that? It just .. can't happen. This is beyond adrenochrome harvesting and pizza basements even.

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Hospital? The school nurse is lining them up and doing the operations in the cafegymatorium.

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Bomb threats to children's hospitals.

They're absolutely terrified someone's chopping off the dicks of 14-year-old boys.

Don't bat an eye at actual cutting of a boy's penis before he's 7 days old.

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I don't think fundies circumcise.

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That would be because of St Paul wanting gentile converts he could collect donations from. Adult Men don't want to get snipped. It was also the major reason for the fight between James, the brother of Jesus and the true head of the followers of Jesus, and Paul who was aligned with the Jewish Priesthood of the Temple who were also aligned with Heriod and the Romans. Paul never met Jesus, admitted he was trying to infiltrate the Christians, and fought against the people who actually knew and studied with Jesus. They were killed during the 70AD destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans and Christianity is based on Paul not Jesus.

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Adult men really should not get snipped. It is far more complicated an operation (retired surgical technologist here) every hard-on has the potential to break the stitches.

Paul was a misogynistic dick and church never should have chosen to become Paulines.

When I was in Turkey, we visited Ancient Ephesus,

the local guide chortled when telling the historical account of Paul getting thrown out of town, for being a fanatical asshole, bothering people for not worshipping the right way.

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I went there too and visited some troglodytes, both abandoned and inhabited.

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Most boys old enough to say so, would say no to having a knife anywhere near there. That's why they do it to voiceless defenseless babies.

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My maternal grandfather got snipped when he was nine.

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My mother did. It was a fundie who popularized the practice in the U.S. as a way to curb masturbation.

I haven't heard of any U.S. demographic that doesn't. From what my mother told me, she'd have had to make an actual effort to stop the doctors from doing it automatically.

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As a retired surgical assistant, I can tell you it goes in and out of style. Poorer white people in the south tended not to, I suspect now they were fundies. It depends on the surgeon, if it is encouraged, or not. my experience was the more educated people tended to want it done for hygienic reasons. But as I said there were trends when it was pretty much always done, and times when it wasn’t popular. YMMV.

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Thanks Seshat, I was born with female genitalia 😅

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Goebbels level shit.

“Accuse others of that which you are guilty of.”

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It wasn't called the Dark Ages for nothing when the Catholic Church got control of Europe. No one could read except Church Priests and they fought against translating the Bible from Latin, a dead language, into readable languages for a thousand years. They executed several scholars who translated it into English and the people who possessed a English Bible including those who read it. Finally giving up Gay King James 1st authorized the King James Bible which supported the Divine Right of Kings for some unknown reason. 😄. And this is supposed to be the unaltered word of God.

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Also I want them out of healthcare.

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Indeed! Healthcare, education, matrimony, and even charity work. It's not like their track record on these recommends them.

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Ab-so-fucking-lutely! And their help always comes with nagging and strings attached.

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"keeping them sheltered, then letting them be exposed to everything all at once when they leave home for work or college—is risky too."

The danger is real, for those who were there when Hemant was on patheos. Lobby Ann (Love, joy, feminism) was raised fundie and homeschooled then sent to a public college. Thus starred her path toward Atheism and rational thinking. God was indeed dead 😁

You can guess her parents were so thrilled they sent her siblings to a private fundie college after that. When she stopped blogging, she was still waiting for the youngest to become of age and trying to unbrainwashing as many as she could.

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I hadn’t thought about Libby Anne in a while! I wonder how she’s doing.

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I wonder too. I loved her Fridays’ posts where she dissected christian books 😁

If you were on patheos, I read three feminists blogs there. Libby Anne's, Captain Cassidy's Roll to disbelieve and another from an older US woman living in Costa Rica with her husband but I can't remember the name. Does that ring a bell ?

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Was it Lisa Lee Curtis?

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I checked her bio on Patreon, I don't think it's her.

And when I google feminist blogs Patheos, the answer I get is "Love, joy, feminidm".

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"Lobby Ann". Is that one of Libby's sisters? : )

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Her hidden twin 😁

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The page at Patheos says Libby Anne wrapped up the blog in 2021.

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I was there when she published her last post stating she would stop blogging because her personal circumstances changed and she didn't have the time anymore. I later learned the truth of what happened thanks to Hemant.

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𝑆ℎ𝑒 𝑠𝑎𝑦𝑠 𝑠ℎ𝑒 𝑤𝑎𝑠 𝑏𝑢𝑙𝑙𝑖𝑒𝑑 𝑎𝑠 𝑎 𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑢𝑙𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑖𝑡 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑖𝑡 𝑡𝑜𝑜𝑘 𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑒 𝑡𝑜 𝑓𝑖𝑔𝑢𝑟𝑒 𝑜𝑢𝑡 ℎ𝑜𝑤 𝑡𝑜 𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑢𝑝 𝑓𝑜𝑟 ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑠𝑒𝑙𝑓. 𝐼𝑡 𝑤𝑜𝑢𝑙𝑑 ℎ𝑎𝑣𝑒 𝑏𝑒𝑒𝑛 𝑠𝑜 𝑚𝑢𝑐ℎ 𝑒𝑎𝑠𝑖𝑒𝑟, 𝑠ℎ𝑒 𝑤𝑟𝑖𝑡𝑒𝑠, 𝑖𝑓 𝑠ℎ𝑒 𝑎𝑙𝑤𝑎𝑦𝑠 𝑎𝑡𝑡𝑒𝑛𝑑𝑒𝑑 𝑝𝑢𝑏𝑙𝑖𝑐 𝑠𝑐ℎ𝑜𝑜𝑙𝑠 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑤𝑎𝑠 𝑢𝑠𝑒𝑑 𝑡𝑜 𝑏𝑒𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑎𝑛 𝑜𝑢𝑡𝑐𝑎𝑠𝑡.

As Hemant says, bullying sucks. Nobody should have to go through it. But given the hormones teens deal with, some of it is probably inevitable. That doesn't make it anything we should support.

I'll quibble however and say that if she had attended K-5 in public school, she probably wouldn't have been such an outcast in 6th. That's a combination of the other kids simply not knowing her, and her not having any 'outsider social skills'. It would not even have had to be the same public school as the one she went to in 6th - experience at any public school would likely have given her at least a leg up at the next one.

𝑇ℎ𝑎𝑡’𝑠 𝑤ℎ𝑦 𝑠ℎ𝑒 𝑠𝑎𝑦𝑠 𝑚𝑜𝑟𝑒 𝐶ℎ𝑟𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑖𝑎𝑛𝑠 𝑠ℎ𝑜𝑢𝑙𝑑 𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑠𝑖𝑑𝑒𝑟 𝑝𝑢𝑏𝑙𝑖𝑐 𝑠𝑐ℎ𝑜𝑜𝑙𝑠 𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑖𝑟 𝑘𝑖𝑑𝑠. 𝐴𝑓𝑡𝑒𝑟 𝑎𝑙𝑙, 𝑡ℎ𝑜𝑠𝑒 𝑐ℎ𝑖𝑙𝑑𝑟𝑒𝑛 𝑎𝑟𝑒 𝑔𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡𝑜 𝑙𝑒𝑎𝑣𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑖𝑟 𝐶ℎ𝑟𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑖𝑎𝑛 𝑏𝑢𝑏𝑏𝑙𝑒 𝑎𝑡 𝑠𝑜𝑚𝑒 𝑝𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡.

That's not the way they see it. Bluntly put:

𝐄𝐯𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐥𝐬 𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐧 𝐭𝐨 𝐧𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐛𝐮𝐛𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐛𝐲 𝐞𝐱𝐩𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐛𝐮𝐛𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐜𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐨𝐥𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐲.

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The bullying she attributes to her Christianity is likely more aptly attributed to her having been sheltered. Since a great deal of the children bullying her were likely Christian themselves.

Just like when Christians proclaim they’re being persecuted for their Christianity when they’re excluded from sports leagues or fired from jobs for being discriminatory. It is t the Christianity, it’s the abhorrent behavior and bigotry.

She was probably pretty awkward and focused on her religion with the other kids because she’s never had opportunities to socialize without that filter and they weren’t used to it. Kids focus on others being different from them and so she got the unwanted attention. It was wrong for them to bully.

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And now I got a new nightmare. Thank you so very much.

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Once I went to public school, and look at me now. Turned me into a god-damn well-adjust functional adult who can have empathy for people who are not exactly like me. Mother-fuckers, screwed-up my life.

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I think I gained a hell of a lot of empathy from being a closeted Gay man. I don't know I did, but I think so.

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As a public school teacher, I’m honestly offended by that article *because* it doesn’t rock the boat. Public schools, when properly funded, are wonderful places for youth to be and learn. I have seen kids go from horribly anxious about math to eagerly raising their hands to answer questions in a single school year. I have helped kids “get it” after years of struggling. I have been that safe adult for some of my students to talk to.

And I do it all while simultaneously planning lessons, grading papers, and giving accommodations to the kids who need them.

Homeschoolers wish they could.

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You !!! Where were you when I was in school ?!

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Mrs. G tried teaching me quadratic equations in algebra to no avail. One day the advanced math teacher took over when she was sick. I told him, and he said basically the same as she did but he made something click, and I was solving them as fast as he could write them. BINGO!

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Some people learn differently than others. Some teachers understand that. Many don't. I am saddened that Bhm didn't have a better math teacher. I am saddened I didn't have a better history teacher. Or better textbook, I learn by reading a lot better than I do by hearing.

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For history, it's DM who got me hooked on it, even before I started learning about it in school. I remember the history teacher from 3rd grade giving me history books from 5th grade to read to have me stay still, I always finished my history tests* too fast 😁

* Mostly questions with one right answer to choose among three or four.

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I used to read ahead in my math books when I finished in-class work early. Or sometimes just because I was bored while the teacher was going over concepts for the other students that I had already understood.

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From 1st to 5th grade all the classes had a small selection of books for the children who were faster. The problem with me is that I ran through them in less than a term (trimester).

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In Geometry, the teacher would have the homework assignment on the board at the beginning of class. After she was done grading the previous day's homework, a friend and I would read the day's section in the book and race to see who could finish the assignment first. At worst, there were one to three questions I didn't finish in class.

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I had good math teachers at school all the way up, including at the university. I loved math. I was convinced I was going to be a math scientist or teacher or something like that. And then one day, record keeping entered my lifel. I love it.

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In teaching Ballet, of all things, I found out that people responded to either visual, auditory, or kinesthetic learning. If someone wasn't getting it, I switched modes until they did. It was up to me to figure out how they memorized things. Still once in awhile they went to another teacher and returned to show me what they learned. Exactly what I had been showing them for 6 months. 😄. I consoled myself that maybe I had paved the way for it to sink in.

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I'm a learning assistant in a kindergarten classroom in a public school. I feel very honoured to help small humans excel.

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"Oh yes, what could possibly go wrong handing your children over to people who hate God and want to train them in paganism for 1260 hours every year for a minimum of 13 years?"

This is so out of touch with reality that being out of touch with reality would be an improvement.

Let's try to unpack:

"Handing your children over." What does that even mean? Sending them to a private school would also be "handing them over." Daycare for children who are not yet school age would be "handing them over." Unless they are homeschooling, and few have the financial resources to do so, the children will be "handed over" to someone at some point during the day. Does this delusional commenter expect direct physical control of her children at all times, permanently? As priceless as we think our children are, 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗼𝗯𝗷𝗲𝗰𝘁𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗯𝗲 𝗵𝗼𝗮𝗿𝗱𝗲𝗱. 𝗧𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗣𝗘𝗢𝗣𝗟𝗘.

"People who hate God." Um, the teachers at your local public school generally reflect the religious demographics of the school district. If they all "hate God", then so do the vast majority of the people one will encounter every day in the community.

"Train them in paganism." Really? Now math, science, history, and literature are "paganism"? No, the children aren't being trained in "paganism". They are being 𝘵𝘢𝘶𝘨𝘩𝘵 how to read, add, and basic facts about the past and how the world works. They would only recieve instruction on paganism in a comparative religions course, which is generally not available until college.

I do understand what the far right talking points are actually saying. This woman is afraid her children will learn unapproved things before they are sufficiently indoctrinated into her cult to remain delusional about reality.

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I’m an actual Pagan teacher, and my students have no idea because—gasp!—there’s no time to teach them paganism when they have actual math to learn.

(I also had private Christian schools inflicted on me up to grade 9. Obviously it didn’t take.)

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I'm guessing that even if you had a wonderful class that learned all the lessons with time to spare, you still wouldn't. If that happened, they'd get...more math. But some sort of fun math.

Because the key difference between fundies and the rest of us is not what Gods we do or don't believe in, it's that we see proselytizing children compelled to be in our presence as a moral wrong, while they see it as a moral necessity.

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Sterling example of projection.

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Pagan too, quoique not a teacher, it would end in a blood bath in 5 minutes 🤣

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"and few have the financial resources to do so,"

The pearls were not rich and none of their children went toa public schools. You can buy second hands books and only buy one set for each grade and passing them from child to child.

Thanks to the efforts of fundies groups like adf and the one Hemant mention, in several states, homeschooling isn't supervised even nominally.

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This is true. It is also true that very few of them have the educational background to effectively teach their children more than the basics of one or two of the many subjects the kids need to learn. The "success" stories of homeschoolers are usually the rare motivated autodidacts.

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Simone Biles was homeschooled but she was the exception, not the norm. DM is again homeschooling unless there is no other choice precisely because of this kind of limitations.

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"DM is again homeschooling . . ."

DM's pregnant‽‽‽ ;)

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I wonder, why aren't the Pearls in prison for the child abuse they inflicted? Oh yeah, Christian Fucking Privilege.

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In a sane world they would be, the fucking baby-beaters.

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"𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗼𝗯𝗷𝗲𝗰𝘁𝘀"

They are the property of their father, according to the bibel.

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Surprisingly, they didn't claim the public school nurses are performing abortions.......

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Assclowns. School is about socialization and learning how to get along as much as it is about anything. Sure it fails miserably most of the time but so does everything else so it's not like school is any different from any other institution, and far safer than any church

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I went to public school in Massachusetts. Our public schools are some of the very best in the country. The last Catholic church I went to had a boys only( yah issues with that Trust me!) school and half of the boys came from families who were not Catholic or Christian. I wish all public and private schools gave children the same modern education. Modern meaning" lets please stop living in a fairy tale and actially teach children what they need to be taught and make up their own minds elsewhere about Aetheism or religion."

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I have chosen a third way, apatheism. What will be, will be, I really don't give a damn!

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I used to be an apatheist, back when I didn't think that religion's impact on our society was all that serious. Needless to say, my point of view has changed. It had its start with the crap I used to see from the likes of Pat Robertson, Jerry Falwell, Jim and Tammy Fae, and Jimmy Swaggart. Then 9/11 happened and my cage was rattled that little bit further. I will admit to having been a slow study, but I did finally come around and recognize, not just my own atheism, but my desire to DO something about the religious crap encroaching on our secular government. That's why I'm a member of the Freedom From Religion Foundation and have been for 10 years now. That's why I speak out when I see crap going on that shouldn't be and why I write my representatives or take other action as necessary.

Because if WE don't do something, 𝗜𝗧 𝗗𝗢𝗘𝗦𝗡'𝗧 𝗚𝗘𝗧 𝗗𝗢𝗡𝗘.

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I am not apathetic about

the damage religion is doing to our society. I am apathetic personally about all that faith stuff!

I really appreciate your input on this forum. I hope you are having a good day in my hometown of Cleveland, we have the remnants of Francine over us today.

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Thanks. 👍

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Be safe and keep dry. 👍🏻

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Que Sera,Sera. 😊

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I started a zillion comments about how insane those parents sounded, only to finally give up, thank god, count my blessings, and be grateful I grew up in a zero religion household and passed that gift to my kids. Puns absolutely intended.

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Cthulhu says, "your welcome". : )

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😄😸👍🏻

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Dittto. When all my girlfriends would tell of the abuse that came along with religion, I almost felt guilty for having such wonderful parents, who stressed thinking for yourself.

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OT: Trump says he won't debate Harris again.

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/trump-harris-second-2024-presidential-debate/

Considering that she kicked his sorry ass the FIRST time, maybe Donnie has learned something about his opponent and his ability to [fail to] deal with her!

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Pre-CISE-ly!

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Link's awakening. Don't attack a chicken, they will chase you in pack.

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Try raising those big white turkeys!

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What do you know a Republican *CAN* be right about something. Mike Collins nailed it.

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So now she can make chicken noises whenever she talks about him.

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🐔🥚🐔🥚🐔🥚

I'd love to see his reaction if Kamala Harris decides to do a televised town hall without him. Would he take the bait because of his outsized ego? I don't think he can help himself.

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